


Where Will You Be In a Year?

by lachoy



Category: Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-01
Updated: 2015-08-01
Packaged: 2018-04-12 11:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4478129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lachoy/pseuds/lachoy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been a year since the long game ended and a year for change and growth. What can a year change? Everything and nothing all at once.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Where Will You Be In a Year?

**Neku**

Neku never got along well with his parents. They didn't fight, but they didn't bond and Neku had never tried. At thirteen he'd claimed it was a lost cause with them. With his father it was especially hard, seeing as the man was constantly working and they were so different. His mom worked a lot, but he saw her more and Neku could see glimpses of himself in her. His father made him feel like maybe he was born to the wrong family sometimes, though he never thought it was on purpose. Anymore, anyway.

That day he had plans with his friends and hooking up his headphones to his player, he came running out of his room when he saw his father at the kitchen table. Maybe a year ago, he would have seen a stranger. A man that Neku thought of as father, the man who gave me half of me, and nothing else. But today Neku saw a tired man who probably worked so much to make sure his family had what they had. His dark brown hair was sticking up at points, probably from stressed hands and Neku smiled.

“Welcome home,” he said quietly, awkwardly. It didn't feel natural and Neku couldn't remember the last time he'd said those words. Neither did his father as the shock was evident on his face. Maybe one day those words would feel like they belonged.

“Thanks,” his father muttered and awkwardly smiled back.

As Neku ran to meet up at Hachiko, he realized him and his father shared that same smile.

 

**Shiki**

As Shiki brushed her hair in front of her mirror, humming a new song that had been playing on the radio to herself, she heard the message chime from her phone. Picking it up, it was a message from Neku telling her he might be a little late. People were slow and she could hear the agitation even through text. Some things probably wouldn't change and that she was okay with.

Putting on her lip gloss, her phone chimed again and this time it was Eri. Asking if they were still going to hang out later that day after Shiki was done with her other friends. The message was littered with emotes and Shiki sent a message back with the same amount of emotes.

`R u wearing the dress I designed 4 u?`

Shiki looked at her reflection. She was. It was modest and it fit her well. It was as crazy as the rest of Shibuya's styles were, the same things she sewed for other people that she didn't think would ever look quite right on her.

But that was okay.

Sending a picture of herself to Eri, she immediately got a `STILL SO JEALOUS OF THOSE SEAMS!!!!! UR SOOOO TALENTED!!!` and then `ALSO CUTEST GIRL 4EVER`

Shiki laughed and took the compliments, but sent back: `only second 2 u!!!`

With one last look at herself in the mirror, she approved of her reflection. She was looking pretty cute, huh?

 

**Beat**

Preparing the last of the snacks he made for everybody, he let them cool down before going to put more dirty dishes into the sink. His parents would flip if they saw how much of a mess he'd made, but they were always going to find something to be upset about even if he didn't do anything worthy of it. That was just how they were. They didn't seem wholly happy about the hobby he found for himself, but he'd shrugged it off. That's how it went and Beat decided he couldn't let that drag him down. He had to stop letting others make him give up on himself. He was better than that.

“Ah, it smells so good!”

That familiar voice walked into the kitchen and Beat turned around to smile, offering one of the first batch he made that had cooled. “Six out of five?”

“Seven out of five. No! Ten out of five. Definitely,” Rhyme said after she finished chewing and then looked around the room. “Though you might want to clean up the kitchen.”

“I will in a moment, yo. Don't cramp the creational mood I got goin', sis!”

“A stitch in time saves nine,” she warned and then pointed to the clock. “And we're running late.”

Looking at the clock (and showing a time it had no right showing), Beat yelped as he began to panic and start cleaning. “When did the time keep going?! Why didn't you tell me?!”

“I can't stop time!”

 

**Rhyme**

As Rhyme rushed to help clean up the mess her brother made and did it with only being half an hour late to their meeting, Rhyme laughed on her roller skates as she trailed after Beat on his board helping him to carry some of the food he'd made for the gang. Lately she had been trying more things, eager to find new things to do.

She was fairly sure she used to find a lot more joy in other things, but those didn't really appeal to her anymore. But it was okay. There were so many things to do in the world, right? And maybe this was all apart of growing up. It just gave her more reasons to try new things. Like skating was fun and she was thinking about trying ice skating. Maybe after that she'd try her hands at something more creative. The sky was the limit and she felt limitless.

“Took you long enough,” Neku teased when they both got there and as soon as Beat started arguing in good nature with everybody and Shiki laughing as she played mediator to their play argument, Rhyme laughed along. Life was good.

 

**Joshua**

“Still not going to say hi, huh?”

Joshua stayed quiet, not responding back to his Producer as he watched the group of friends laugh around Hachiko and catch up with what they'd missed since the last time they'd been together. All mundane, really. School, hobbies, and normal. RG things that Joshua hadn't thought of in years upon years and things he couldn't even pretend to understand.

“Not that I think Phones' invitation has an expiration date, but if you're gonna keep pining away up here don't you think you should do it sooner rather than later?” Joshua looked over and while he knew the Composer's stare wasn't threatening for an angel of all beings, Hanekoma still knew well enough to act placated. “Okay, okay. Just trying to deal out the wise advice, Boss. But you should really think about untucking that tail of yours.”

Hanekoma disappeared, leaving Joshua alone to watch the group. A beat of silence and then as a gust of wind blew their carried laughs close to him, his fingers clenched into a fist before he retreated back to the Shibuya River.

**Author's Note:**

> A late gift for the 8th anniversary. I cannot believe it'll be ten years soon.


End file.
